Scientific Summary of Ocean Acidification in Washington State Marine Waters.

摘要

The estuarine and coastal waters of Washington State provide important resources and services for supporting and sustaining the lives and culture of its population, including food, recreation, nutrient cycling, and moderating climate, all of which contribute substantially to Washingtons economy. However, in recent years, scientists have demonstrated that the chemistry of the oceans is changing in ways that will have significant impacts on the services and resources it provides. For more than two and a half centuries, humans have injected vast quantities of carbon dioxide (CO2) into earths atmosphere through the burning of fossil fuels and land use changes. Approximately one quarter of this anthropogenic, or human generated, CO2 has been absorbed by the ocean, causing the oceans upper-ocean pH to decrease by about 0.1, in a process known as ocean acidification (OA). By the end of this century, surface ocean pH is expected to decline by another 0.30.4 pH units, with aragonite saturation state decreasing below the current range of annual variability within 12-40 years.